But grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever. Amen.

2 Peter 3:18

SOME LESSONS FROM THE SWISS

If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small. If thou forbear to deliver them that are drawn unto death, and those that are ready to be slain; If thou sayest, Behold, we knew it not; doth not he that pondereth the heart consider it? and he that keepeth thy soul, doth not he know it? and shall not he render to every man according to his works? Proverbs 24:10-12

Switzerland has it all, the Alps, ski resorts, low crime, 800 years of peace, prosperity and democracy. Not too bad, when you consider that they are centered in war torn Europe. Is neutrality their secret? Or do they have something else, also, in their favor?

The Swiss have a civilian army. It numbers over 600,000 men (about 10% of the entire population). This is the equivalent of an American military of about 25 million—which is many times more than America actually has in uniform.

In Switzerland, every able bodied man serves in the military, first in full-time training, and then in the reserves. They do this for at least 30 years (from age 20 to age 50). At age 50, they serve another 10 years in Civil Defense.

Any man deferred from military service must then serve in the Civil Defense instead. The Swiss military became the role model for the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) in the early 1950s. The IDF have never lost a war, though greatly outnumbered by Arab nations such as Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Egypt.

In Switzerland, until recently, every man took his army issue assault rifle home with him and kept it there. As Robinson and North point out in their book Fighting Chance: Ten Feet to Survival , “They are a peaceful, prosperous, freedom-loving, low-crime, heavily armed camp.”

Swiss bridges are mined and the army has military bunkers all over the country. It would cost any invader dearly to try and conquer the Swiss. Which is perhaps why Hitler stayed out during World War II. And why the Russians stayed out after the War.

But that’s not all. The entire Swiss population is sheltered from nuclear attack. Since the 1950s, the Swiss government has required home builders to install basement blast shelters in all new homes. The Swiss government pays part of the cost. Civil Defense construction is a major industry in Switzerland.

The Swiss, like the Russians and Chinese, obviously believe that they should do all possible to protect their population. They know that radiation decays over time. They understand that several feet of dirt and concrete combined can shield people from almost all harmful radiation.

They are aware that underground blast shelters may survive a nuclear blast just a few miles from ground zero. They realize that above ground homes will probably be demolished at the same distance.

Of course, the above calculations will depend on such factors as the size (in either kilotons or much bigger megatons) of the nuclear device and whether it is ground or air burst. But in any case, it would not be cost effective to launch a nuclear strike on Switzerland.

Too many Swiss would survive and be able to resist any invader after such a nuclear attack. The Swiss have the nuclear war survival skills that America lacks. America can learn some lessons from the Swiss.

Other Links of Interest:

Other Web Sites of Interest:

Editor's Note:

We are indebted to Arthur Robinson, Ph.D and Gary North, Ph.D. co-authors of Fighting Chance: Ten Feet to Survival , published by the Oregon Institute of Science and Medicine, PO Box 1279, Cave Junction, Oregon 97523 for the information on which this editorial is based.

George Theiss is a combat veteran of Vietnam who now follows Lamb of God. He and his wife, Christy, have been married 42 years (in 2019). They have 8 grown children. You can contact George at support@tulipgems.com